William in Trouble (30 page)

‘GOOD HEAVENS!’ GASPED MR POLLUCK AGAIN.

William, who was standing by the table, happened to glance down at an open book. His eyes met the sentence, ‘I don’t love him at all. I’m being
forced
to marry him
against my will. I have no one to turn to for help. My heart fails me. He presses his suit every day. He is coming this very afternoon and my parents will
force
me to accede to his
proposals. Alas! what shall I do?’

He gasped.

‘I say,’ he said hoarsely, ‘I – Ethel, I thought I heard you
sayin
’ this this mornin’.’

‘I expect you did,’ said Ethel. ‘I was reading it aloud to Mother. She’d lost her glasses.’

William blinked.

‘Then – then what was this ole Mr Polluck comin’ for?’ he said.

‘Just to have a talk about business with Father. Oh – here they are.’

There came the sound of the opening of the front door and of Mr Brown’s and Mr Polluck’s voices in the hall. Mr Polluck was speaking. He was saying: ‘There were four boys
altogether. The first took me right up the hill and the second right down into the valley, and this last – your little boy – said that your daughter was dead. He said,
“Ethel’s dead – she’s just died,” most distinctly.’

‘Where are you going, William?’ said Mrs Brown, who, being slightly deaf, had not caught the words.

But William was already far away.

Richmal Crompton was born in Lancashire in 1890. The first story about William Brown appeared in
Home
magazine in 1919, and the first collection of William stories was
published in book form three years later. In all, thirty-eight William books were published, the last one in 1970, after Richmal Crompton’s death.

‘Probably the funniest, toughest children’s books ever written’

Sunday Times
on the Just William series

‘Richmal Crompton’s creation [has] been famed for his cavalier attitude to life and those who would seek to circumscribe his enjoyment of it ever since he first
appeared’

Guardian

Books available in the Just William series

Just William

More William

William Again

William the Fourth

Still William

William the Conqueror

William the Outlaw

William in Trouble

William the Good

William at War

First published 1927

This selection first published 1984 by Macmillan Children’s Books

This edition published 2011 by Macmillan Children’s Books

This electronic edition published 2011 by Macmillan Children’s Books
a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited
Pan Macmillan, 20 New Wharf Road, London N1 9RR
Basingstoke and Oxford
Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com

ISBN 978-1-447-20612-5 EPUB

All stories copyright © Richmal C. Ashbee
This selection copyright © 1984 Richmal C. Ashbee
Foreword copyright © Richard Madeley 2011
Illustrations copyright © Thomas Henry Fisher Estate

The right of Richmal C. Ashbee to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

You may not copy, store, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (electronic, digital,
optical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be
liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

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